Thursday, November 13, 2008

Were it not for the fact that Cactus World News regained the rights to their catalog, and thus re-released their debut, Urban Beaches, and it’s long unreleased follow-up, No Shelter a few years ago, they would have surely been one of the first entries on this blog. While it’s always a blast to have all of these under-documented artists in my back pocket to share with you, all the better if you have the opportunity to purchase a well assembled, commercially available reissue. Since their two albums can be purchased through their website, I can only in good conscience feature this promotional live record, taped for Spin magazine’s long put to pasture “Special Forces” live concert series. So far as I know, this was only available on vinyl, and this rip was taken from an original, near-mint condition copy.

Hailing from Dublin, Ireland in the mid-80s, CWN weren’t merely influenced by U2, Bono took the band under his wing and released their first ep on his own Mother Records label. Offering echoing guitar (a la The Edge) and Eoin McEvoy's commanding, soaring vocals, Cactus World News, much like Bono and Co were well ahead of their time. Toss in some keenly, substantive songwriting and a performance acumen well beyond their years, and you had a world-class rock band, one that was sadly marginalized during their much too-fleeting lifespan. This show, recorded at L.A.’s legendary Whiskey on the band’s 1986 US trek supporting Urban Beaches, includes “America,” a song exclusive to this record, ostensibly inspired by their tour (the lyrics are pretty much a dead giveaway). The band’s two albums have recently been issued on CD and available for purchase here. Beaches, by the way, is a superb album of desert island magnitude.

The Subversive Sounds blog was formally hosting their own vinyl-to-digital transfer of this disk, but the download link is kaput. I’d still recommend going there to peruse the commentary if you’re so inclined.

I have not edited the tracks (at least at the tine being), so as to avoid gaps and abrupt segues. The tracklist is as follows: